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Humans
Arrival In the early 1980s, entire cities worth of humans vanished, taken from all corners of the globe. These humans would appear on Othos together and, because they were from the '80s, immediately began fighting each other. This was problematic, because they had been transported to a region called the Dead Salt Wastes. More than half of the species died either from starvation or infighting; it took the sacrifice of many noble spirits and rational minds to eradicate the pointless struggles over political, religious, and racial ideologies that objectively did not matter anymore, so that the dislocated humans could find a means to survive. When unity and mutual understanding was established- in remarkably short time, just over a year- attentions could be and were turned to the twin needs of Survival and Familiarity. It was not by the hands of Man alone that a new civilization would be built, however- they learned quickly that they were far from the only sapient race on this strange new world, and while some of their neighbors were viciously hostile, others were friendly and eager to help them prosper. That was fifty years ago. By the Pedersen Calendar, it is the year 53 NB (Nye Begyndelser, or New Beginnings). The first thirty years of Humanity's existence on Othos was marked by aggressive efforts to build a nation with accomodations and accoutrements that they were familiar with. These efforts have been partially successful, but as the First Arrival generation slowly dies off and the Firstborn generation takes the reins of power, that focus has slowed. Efforts are now turned less toward trying to recreate things that they had never seen from a world they have never known and more to adapting what has been made to further the prosperity and power of the Human race on Othos as a whole. Though they have the notes and journals left by their forebears, there just isn't much reason for the Firstborn- or their children for that matter- to care about things like Chevrolets, M16A1 assault rifles, jumbo jets, and other amazing technological developments that may well be centuries beyond their ability to create. Simple facts of reality dictate that making the sole human nation on Othos bigger, better, and more powerful is of greater importance. Culture Human culture tries to blend all the best aspects of their respective Earth cultures and blend them as one. The ideals of freedom set by the USA, the social protection networks of Canada, the arts of Europe, the hospitality of the Middle East, the unity of the working class as idealized by the Soviet Union, and so forth. It is a difficult and indeed sometimes impossible balance to maintain. The laws of Four Cities can be confusing to outsiders, especially those from more culturally primitive societies; but just as many find them both fascinating and useful- the Catfolk, Bhuka, Avosis, Sauros, and Trengs in particular have become heavily invested in many aspects of Humanity for personal reasons as much as profits. Humans are often seen as childlike by the other races- not just because they are new to Othos, but because they have such expectations of reality and of themselves. They want and indeed expect happy endings and a comfortable standard of living for every individual- and they're willing to fight and die for that, as was evidenced by the Desert Blossom War of 22, when the Halflings attempted to subjugate and enslave humanity and learned painfully that they would rather fight to the last youth able to hold a blade or bow rather than submit. Humans have a love for beautiful things and fancy toys, even greater than the love of gold and silver. It is a common belief amongst humans that life should be a thing of grandeur and wonder, and even after two- or three, if you count the Purging (the self-destructive events of when man first appeared)- vicious, bloody wars many still mistake this optimism for naievty. Following in tune with their optimism and the beliefs of their odd, dominant religion (referred to simply as Abrahamism, even though it's actually several different religious ideologies- most foreigners can't tell the difference as these ideologies work together), most of Humanity tries to be welcoming of other races into their culture... Provided that newcomers can behave and adapt to their way of life and thinking. The reverse however is not very common, and part of why humanity has yet to really spread out beyond their home nation- the cultures of the other races are seen for the most part as either inferior or unsuitable for comfortable human survival. Only the Bhuka and the Catfolk garner much respect from Humans, as their cultures share much in common and thus can be seen as suitable for certain kinds of people. The greatest weakness of human culture is its lack of magic- their world having no magic that they were aware of, Humans have produced few spellcasters of any sort. The third generation of humans is showing greater interest in magic, but at present almost all of them are Martial or Expert classes. Of those humans who have figured out spellcasting, there are more Divine casters- usually Clerics of Abrahamism or Rangers- than there are Arcane casters. These humans are often regarded with both jealousy and awe by their peers, for their command over forces that are effectively alien to the species. Template Adjustments Humans may choose at creation to have a favored class of either Fighter or Rogue. Without an Intelligence score of at least 16, Humans cannot learn Arcane spellcasting. Divine spellcasting requires a minimum of Wisdom 14. Humans have a hard time truly understanding magic because it conflicts so much with the science they are familiar with. Human clerics are usually followers of Abrahamism, a simplified variant of Earth's dominant monotheistic beliefs created by a collection of rabbis, priests, and imams who wished to promote harmony and unity. Domains are Healing, Good, and Protection. A minority of human Clerics may be Shintoists, who have the domains of Animal, Knowledge, and Law. Clerics of any other ideology represent extreme minorities so small as to be unconsidered. Pictures HumanMaleOuterWear.jpg|A hunter dressed for desert weather HumanFemaleOuterWear.jpg|Women's styles are very similar to men's. HumanProfessionalWear.gif|Retro-casual, based on historic Earth designs. Really though most casual wear is based on 80s fashions, minus the polyester. Look for pictures of that yourself, I am so not digging up the thousands of examples of that :| Races Main Page